This application claims the priority of German patent document 10 2004 062 999.4, filed Dec. 22, 2004, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated by reference herein.
The present invention is directed to a motor vehicle having a movable roof and an extensible rollover protection element.
A motor vehicle of the above-mentioned type, known from German Patent Document DE 103 29 903 B3, has a movable roof in the form of a convertible top into whose roof skin a rear window is inserted. The motor vehicle also has a rollover protection element which is constructed as at least one rollover bar arranged behind a vehicle seat. The rollover bar, which is extensible from a lower or retracted inoperative position into an extended protective position projecting over the belt line of the motor vehicle, is held in a receiving cassette. When the roof is in the closed position, the rollover element takes up a first protective position, which is dimensioned such that the roof skin or the rear window are not destroyed. When the roof is in the opened position, the rollover protection element is moved out into a second protective position which projects over the first protective position.
One object of the invention is to provide a motor vehicle of the initially mentioned type, which affords improved rollover protection.
This and other objects and advantages are achieved by the present invention, which provides an enlarged protection area for the vehicle occupant/occupants, independently of the position of the roof (opened or closed). That is, the move-out height of the rollover protection element is maximally, selected independently of the roof position.
According to a further embodiment of the invention, the rollover protection element breaks through the roof skin in its protective position. In this case, it can be provided that the rollover protection element pushes through a non-transparent section of the roof skin. As an alternative, the rollover protection element can push through a transparent section (specifically, the rear window), or can at least partially detach or cut the rear window out of the roof skin. In a preferred embodiment, the rear window is equipped with a desired breaking point for this purpose which reliably permits a destruction of the rear window, and/or the rear window is held in the roof skin by way of a desired breaking point.
In order to favorably influence the destruction of the rear window or the penetration of the roof skin, in another preferred embodiment, the rollover protection element is equipped with a piercing element, particularly,
Finally, the movable roof may be constructed as a convertible top with a flexible convertible top material which, together with the rear window, can form the roof skin. However, it would also be possible to construct the roof as a convertible top which has a firm roof skin, for example, made of sheet metal, into which the rear window is inserted.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.